Customer Reviews

Your Baby's First Year (Second Edition)

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

As of Spring 2009 I am teaching pediatric doctors in training that this "non-profit" book, published by The Am. Academy of Pediatrics, is essentially "Pediatric Excellence." The book is a compilation of the best advice from over 100 pediatrician experts of the Academy. The information covers the spectrum from unborn to one year.

The advice is practical and traditional. Those looking for a "trendy" or "novel" approach to baby care should look elsewhere. Those seeking the "tried and true" will find this book (containing THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS official positions on pediatric health) the perfect "go to" baby book. Finally, for the price, there is hardly any better value. Consider the following overview with best wishes with you new baby:

"PART I, Preparing for a New Baby," starts with pages on getting-it-right with your prenatal person. Topics include, choosing a pediatrician, preparing your home and family for arrival, routine and not so routine issues that can occur during delivery and immediate day-to-day care.

In "PART II" these pediatrician experts address the many questions that some parents may not have the time or courage to ask their pediatrician. How many BM's and what color? Birth-marks, Colic, the umbilical chord, traveling, going outside, baby's ability to smell, sitters, day care, and pages and pages of more. The breast-feeding chapter is a recipe for success, while not demeaning people who for one reason or another need to bottle-feed.

The books exhaustive index is a quick guide for re-checking or searching down a certain problem. Unlike many other books, this one covers the health from the baby's perspective, with the express focus of what is best for your baby's care, directly from the Academy, the world's foremost advocate and authority on children's medicine.

Each chapter contains information that is easy to read, yet avoids being simplistic. All parents, no matter their experience or education will find the information in these pages essential and valuable. For best results, buy the book early in mother's last trimester. If you wait until the baby arrives you will miss one-third of the book. However, if you wait until after the birth, you need to also go out and buy it for the rest of your baby's first year. It is still worth it. As a practicing pediatrician and a professor of pediatrics I give the book to each every new parent and each and every new pediatrician in training. At the Northside Children's Pediatric Center this book is required reading.

Doctor "Mike"
Associate Professor of Pediatrics

This book is invaluable to any new parent. It is organized by your child's age and outlines what you as a parent should expect from your child and when to be concerned. From motor skills to intellectual progress, this books dismissed my paranoia regarding my child's development and allowed me to ask the right questions during routine exams by our pediatrician.

It has a very concise index that is written in simple terms allowing you to find the topic easily. From bee stings to allergies, rolling over to walking and a very comprehensive section on safety, I have given this book to every friend that is becoming a parent for the first time. It's the closest thing to a user's manual I have found.

As first time parents, my husband and I were totally lost when it came to newborn care and basic baby information. We had very few friends with babies and no close family members to refer to. So, when I discovered this book a few days before giving birth, it gave us great comfort with lots of detailed information of what to expect. Our beautiful baby is almost 3 months old now and this book has been used a lot already! I'm sure that it will be used much more in the months to come as well. This is a great resource, full of details and lots of good information. Put it on your list to buy.

I received this book as a gift from my first child's pediatrician. It saved me - and it had little to do with the advice it offered on parenting. Little did I know, I was suffering from post-partum depression, and there is an incredibly helpful section in this book that I read over and over again. It helped me to maintain my sanity during a very confusing time.

One of the things I like about this book is that it comes directly from the American Academy of Pediatrics, so the content is very fact-based rather than based on opinions or child-rearing method preferences.

However, the reason I've given the book only 4 stars rather than 5 is that I've found over the years that the AAP changes its opinions quite a lot on certain topics (vaccinations, circumcision, etc). In just the 3.5 years between my 2 kids, the AAP has issued varying opinions on the same topics, so I'm not sure this book would be consistently accurate across time.

All-in-all, this book is a great reference, and will have at least a basic answer to almost any first-time parenting question.

I purchased this book before my baby was born, along with Heidi Murkoff's book. I must say this book helped me the most, it's almost like talking to your pediatrician. It is sectioned differently than other 1st year books, as it clumps the months into threes or fours. It also includes a first aid section and a section with common illnesses. I used it as a reference every time my baby got sick, and it helped when I actually did bring her to the Doctor because I already had a general idea of what they were talking about. It also has great advice and unlike other books, which seem to contain lots of opinions, this one is actually backed by the AAP and scientific studies. The developmental milestone sections are also great. This is the only book that I felt confident following advice from.

If you're cradling a crying baby in one arm and you need a straightforward answer about baby's health RIGHT NOW, this is absolutely the book you want to have within reach. It's got a great index and extensive information about childcare and infant health. Parents on a budget will appreciate its recommendations about what baby equipment is necessary vs. what's optional -- you can get away with less than you'd think -- and any parent will appreciate the clear advice on what symptoms to watch for and when to call the doctor. Since this book is a broad-based reference, some subjects don't get in-depth treatment; for example, breastfeeding mothers may want to check out The Nursing Mother's Companion: Revised Edition or another breastfeeding reference in addition to the breastfeeding information presented in this book. That said, almost every baby-related subject is at least touched on, and this book is a great resource to check out the answer to almost any question.

As a father, I have had to put up with several books that are "meant" for dads. In Norway, that means having to read through a lot of semi-funny and useless knowledge.

This book is exactly what I have been looking for!
It is to the point and easy to read, with a good reference section. Covers everything I wanted to know. Highly recommended for all parents!

I agree that this book has an agenda and does not acknowledge some of the newer theories on parenting. However, it does contain some very good, practical advice on how to care for a newborn. The section on breast-feeding, for example, is quite helpful. For the price, you certainly can't go wrong with this book.

Great resource, easy to read, gives a nice idea of milestones for my son.
It's organized nicely. All in all a good resource.

As a first time mom I found this book to be very informative. Plus for me it made a difference that it was written by Pediatricians and that no one was paid to give advice by certain companies.

I really liked the section on breast feeding and found some great information overall in this book. It was recommended to me and I will definitely be recommending to others.